Some Chinese officials are beginning to show discomfort with Internet campaigns targeting corruption.

Online activists have played a role in the fall of a number of corrupt officials in recent weeks, from the hard-to-watch sex video of former Chongqing Communist Party official Lei Zhengfu to the extensive watch and house collections of ousted officials in Shaanxi province and the city of Guangzhou respectively.

The scrutiny they faced offers a demonstration of the raw power of China's social-media platforms despite tough censorship efforts, in a time of rising concerns over corruption. They also could put pressure on the nation's new leadership, headed by new party chief Xi Jinping, who has called for greater efforts to root out corruption.

scrutiny：详细审查，监视　　　　censorship：审查制度，审查机构　　　　root out ：连根拔起，根除

But there are hints that some officials think matters have gone too far. This week, censorship officials in the city of Beijing expressed to some local media outlets their concern that the online anticorruption drive has been too extreme, one person briefed on the discussion told China Real Time. The officials told the outlets to refrain from carrying the stories, the person said. Beijing city officials didn't respond to requests to comment.

refrain from：克制，忍住，制止   

Earlier this week, the party mouthpiece People's Daily said in an editorial headlined 'The Internet Is Not Outside the Law' that 'the damage caused to individuals or to society is not limited to the virtual world.' (China Media Project offers a translation.)

The Global Times, the People's Daily-owned tabloid, weighed in on Friday.

'Problems caused by the Internet have been accumulating,' it wrote. 'It advocates individual freedom, but at the same time severely damages it. The exposure of private data as well as illegal online activity have destroyed the positive environment of this new medium.'

Many on China's social-media services aren't persuaded by the argument. Said one Sina Weibo user: 'If you didn't do anything wrong, you won't be afraid of the devils looking for you. there must be some problems. They should be investigated!'

The tensions represent the delicate balancing act China's leaders face as worries about corruption's rise. Apparently sensitive to public opinion, some corners of Chinese officialdom have tiptoed toward greater openness. But the moves have been low-level and modest at best, and the party apparatus has cautioned that the same sorts of disclosure that leaders in the U.S. and other nations are required to make could be years away. Amid this balancing act, Internet watchdogs can offer a disruptive push.

delicate：精巧的，精致的　　　　officialdom：官场，官员，官僚作风　　　　apparatus：仪器，装备

disclosure：披露，揭发　　　　

Exhibit A: Xingan county in China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region blurred the photos of officials on its website, saying it was meant to stop blackmailers who had Photoshopped them into compromising positions. (Here's an English-language account.) A number of officials in the county didn't return calls for comment, with one pointing China Real Time to look at local press reports that detailed the blackmailing issue.

blackmailers：勒索者，敲诈者　　　　

The move drew condemnation online.

Said one poster: 'No matter what reasons the government made for doing this, it's far from the country's goal of government information disclosure. The purpose should be letting people supervise officials. But now, if people can't recognize the faces of the officials, there is no longer supervision. '